International iron-ore mining company Sundance Resources reports that its Mbalam-Nabeba iron-ore project, which will mine 35-million tons a year for a minimum of 25 years from deposits that straddle the border between the Central African countries of Cameroon and the Republic of Congo, is transitioning towards the construction and development phase.

Subject to securing funding and the ratification of the Mbalam Mining Convention by the Cameroon Parliament, the next step involves the construction of a deep-water port at Lolabe and a mine at Mbarga, in Cameroon, and a mine at Nabeba, in the Republic of Congo, as well as a 510 km heavy-haulage rail line with a 70 km spur line for the transportation and export of 35-million tons a year of iron-ore to international markets.

“The project construction is expected to take three years before operations can begin. The mine life for Stage 1 direct shipping ore production is expected to be at least ten years, during which high-grade ore will be mined for export, followed by Stage 2, which will be a further 15 years of producing a valuable, enriched product from beneficiation of deeper, lower-grade hematite ore, called itabirite, a similar type of ore to what base metals miner Vale mines in Brazil, South America,” says Sundance Resources MD and CEO Giulio Casello.

He explains that the company is currently identifying strategic partners who are interested in participating in the development.

“These groups of strategic partners come from a range of countries and have widely diversified interests in areas such as resource projects, infrastructure provision and steelmaking. They have also expressed different views about how it would be possible to structure transactions, which draws the investors to this project,” he says.

He adds that, while some of these talks are more advanced than others, all current discussions remain incomplete and confidential.

“We are encouraged by the positive feedback from these groups, who consider our Mbalam-Nabeba iron-ore project to be a resourceful deposit in the heart of what is poised to be the world’s next great iron-ore region.

“In addition to the extraction of minerals, the project also includes the construction of new, dedicated transport infrastructure for the export of iron-ore to global markets. We are not yet in the construction phase, as this will follow once funding has been confirmed,” Casello says.

He further states that the exploration phase began in 2007 on permits held near Mbalam, in the Haut-Nyong district, in the eastern region of Cameroon. In the Republic of Congo, the company commenced exploration drilling in 2010. Since then, geological investigations, feasibility studies, financial partnership development and environmental- and social-impact studies have been conducted.

“To date, sufficient mineral resources have been identified, feasibility studies have been completed, environmental approvals have been obtained and the acquisition of the land required has been approved,” he notes.

Casello states that Sundance Resources is a publicly listed company on the Australian Securities Exchange trading under the code “SDL” and its corporate headquarters are in Perth, Western Australia.

“We also have operations and offices in both Cameroon and the Republic of Congo. Sundance operates across a range of locations internationally and is committed to a high-performance culture within our workforce, enhanced by the diversity of our employees.

“During our exploration ope- rations, we employed about 300 direct and indirect workers. About 80% of our workforce in Africa comprises Cameroonian and Congolese nationals. Through the Mbalam Mining Convention, the company has committed to a budget dedicated to professional training and the transfer of know-how to increase development and career opportunities for the local workforce,” Casello explains.

He states that Sundance is continuing to advance the project and ensure that its progress towards development and, therefore, that its value to Sundance shareholders and future strategic investors, is increased.

Casello adds that the Mbalam-Nabeba iron-ore project will enjoy some of the lowest costs in the global iron-ore industry, with a long-life resource which, as development of the wider iron-ore region unfolds, will provide a significant strategic advantage for the parties involved.

“We have no doubt that Mbalam-Nabeba is poised to become one of the most attractive, large-scale iron-ore projects in the world,” he says, adding that the project has high-grade hematite resources of 775.4-million tons grading at 57.2% iron, including hematite reserves of 436.3-million tons grading at 62.6% iron.

“In addition, Mbalam-Nabeba has itabirite hematite resources of 4-billion tons grading at 36.3% iron. As part of our definitive feasibility study, these mineral reserves and other factors substantiate the commercial terms required for the construction of dedicated infrastructure for the Mbalam-Nabeba project,” he concludes.